Seem to me that grant cannot live up to big and crucial matches,
points conceded always. When is the last time he won a big
match? Blame it on the luck or his tactics?
3-1 up and still don't know how to contain it, IMO he had been
given enough luck but just to throw it away to many times.
Tottenham 4 Chelsea 4:
Chelsea hopes fade as Grant's tactics are exposed in
thriller
By Sam Wallace
Thursday, 20 March 2008
While Avram Grant fiddled, Chelsea's title ambitions burned. It
was, quite simply, the most extraordinary game of the season so far
- a conflagration of eight goals, three Tottenham comebacks and
another set of bizarre tactical decisions from a Chelsea manager
who just cannot get it right in the big games.
When the dust had settled after Robbie Keane's brilliant
88th-minute equaliser, Grant was left to wonder whether this was
the moment that his club's title ambitions died. Manchester United
are five points ahead, Chelsea's opportunity to draw level with
Arsenal in second place has gone. Roman Abramovich cannot grumble
about the entertainment value but he must take issue at the way
Grant’s team are blowing their chances of a trophy.
This was the game that had everything. There was a sublime
performance from Joe Cole, whose two goals made him the outstanding
performer before Grant's decision to substitute him with Chelsea
4-3 up. And on the dark side there was an horrendous studs-up
challenge from Ashley Cole before half-time that could have broke
Alan Hutton's leg and was met with a terrible decision from Mike
Riley who booked Cole instead of sending him off.
Against Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool and, in the last two
games against Spurs, Grant has failed to beat the big beasts of
English football. Juande Ramos picked the same XI that beat Chelsea
in last month's Carling Cup final and, by the skin of his teeth,
has again frustrated Grant. At 1-0, 3-1 and 4-3 up his Chelsea team
should have won this game, yet by the end even Grant's own players
seemed baffled by his substitutions.
With his team 3-2 in the lead, having led 3-1, the Chelsea manager
tried to close out the game in Jose Mourinho-fashion by bolstering
his defence. He sent on the Brazilian defender Alex da Costa as
sweeper in what seemed like a counter-move to Ramos's decision to
bring on Darren Bent, a third striker. But on the pitch, Chelsea
lost their shape, Didier Drogba looked to the bench in despair and
Tom Huddlestone equalised. The game was in the balance again.
Then, after Joe Cole had seemingly got Grant off the hook with a
brilliant second goal to put his team 4-3 in the lead, the Chelsea
manager struck again. Off came Cole this time for Michael Ballack
and Chelsea were caught cold once again. After a clearance struck
Ricardo Carvalho's back, Keane hit a 20-yard equaliser past Carlo
Cudicini and Grant must have felt the cold sweat break out on his
forehead. Ramos had out-thought him.
Tiny margins for error; huge consequences. The basis of the five
trophies won by Mourinho was a sure-footedness in pressurised
situations. It is the hallmark of all great managers and, once
again, Ramos showed he has that judgement in abundance. Grant seems
to lack it. The Spurs manager made two substitutions – his key call
was Bent coming on for Ledley King on 68 minutes – and he got it
right.
It was telling that, at 4-4 in the very last moments of the match,
Grant was lucky that Spurs did not take all three points. The
excellent Dimitar Berbatov twisted into space and had a clear shot
at goal that only Cudicini's desperate save stopped. Sunday at
Stamford Bridge provides Grant with his shot at redemption against
Arsenal, but on this evidence there is no doubt which team will win
if it comes down to the manager's decisions.
Take a deep breath and go back to the start. Four minutes into the
game and Drogba met John Terry's peach of a cross with a downward
header past Paul Robinson. It was the Ivorian's first Premier
League goal since 11 September, his first goal in any competition
since the Carling Cup final.
1-1: on 12 minutes Jonathan Woodgate, who had lost Drogba for the
first goal, headed home Jermaine Jenas' free-kick for the
equaliser. 2-1 to Chelsea: on 19 minutes Joe Cole's throughball
took a touch off Drogba before Michael Essien lifted a brilliant
chip over Robinson. Then it started to get nasty.
Terry's knee caught Berbatov's head as the two tumbled in the
Chelsea area. Lampard went straight through Jenas and at half-time
the Spurs man was substituted for Huddlestone. Riley did not even
book Lampard but his worst decision was to come. Just before
half-time, Hutton moved in to control a ball by the touchline and
from out of the frame came Ashley Cole, lunging, stretching and
with studs raised. Had Hutton's foot been grounded when Cole
connected with his leg then the injury would have been disastrous.
The card was yellow but should have been red.
3-1 to Chelsea: on 52 minutes, Joe Cole took the long route around
Pascal Chimbonda in the right channel before striking a low shot
that cannoned off Robinson's legs and in. 3-2: six minutes later
the Tottenham comeback began. Huddlestone's corner found Berbatov
who flighted a header into the corner. 3-3: on 75 minutes a loose
corner fell to Huddlestone who drilled in the equaliser.
The finale. 4-3: another goal from Joe Cole who burst through and
struck the ball into the roof of Robinson's goal on 80 minutes and
was then substituted. 4-4: Keane's riposte, White Hart Lane in
raptures. In the 90th minute, Grant sent on Andrei Shevchenko but
it was a bit late then to be changing a team that had already been
pulled apart by its own manager.
Goals: Drogba (3) 0-1; Woodgate (12) 1-1; Essien (20) 1-2; J Cole
(52) 1-3; Berbatov (61) 2-3; Huddlestone (75) 3-3; J Cole (80) 3-4;
Keane (8
4-4.
Tottenham Hotspur (4-4-2): Robinson; Hutton, Woodgate, King (Bent,
6,
Chimbonda; Lennon, Jenas (Huddlestone, h-t), Zokora, Malbranque;
Keane, Berbatov. Substitutes not used: Cerny (gk), Tainio,
Dawson.
Chelsea (4-1-4-1): Cudicini; Ferreira (Shevchenko, 89), Carvalho,
Terry, A Cole; Makelele; J Cole (Ballack, 82), Essien, Lampard,
Kalou (Alex, 71); Drogba. Substitutes not used: Hilario (gk),
Wright-Phillips.
Referee: M Riley (Yorkshire).
Booked: Tottenham Keane, Huddlestone; Chelsea J Cole, A Cole.
Man of the match: J Cole.
Attendance: 36,178
